Coming up this Saturday, Sept. 13 is one of the most anticipated and significant events of the year, and an old, revered Jesuit High School tradition: the Holy Bowl.  This year’s game against Christian Brothers High School, played at Sacramento City College’s own Hughes Stadium, will be the 45th installment of this essential part of Jesuit culture.

“We’re gonna need more spirit than CB,” says Senior Thomas Ryan, runner up in last year’s Student Council Presidential election.  After three years of playing experience playing in the Jesuit High band section during Holy Bowl, Ryan says that not only do the football teams have their “battle royale” so to speak, but the school bands also have a little bit of competition during the game.  According to him, the Christian Brothers band section might not be quite up to par with our own section.  Seeing as the Jesuit band is being lead by the legendary Mr. Cunha, it is quite likely that the Jesuit musicians will outshine the Falcons’ band.  Ryan just hopes that he and the rest of his crew will be able to do their best to help the Marauders to take the win.

The Galley Crew, the best cheering section for any high school anywhere, decided to go big for this year’s Holy Bowl.  One of these changes is that the first three rows of the Galley Crew will be for use only by Jesuit students, ensuring that the people closest to the game are the most energized people throughout the whole section.  In order to make the Galley Crew even more rowdy, the cheerleaders are going to be passing around chalk for everyone to throw in the air when the Marauders score their first touchdown.  And even better, the cheerleaders are going to print out giant cardboard cut-outs of some of the key player’s heads for the fans.  Nick Kolokotronis says that not only are they trying to “out-cheer CB,” but they are also trying to out-cheer any of the past Galley Crews for Holy Bowl.

After winning 18 Holy Bowls over the past 20 years, the Jesuit Varsity football team has a lot to live up to, especially considering last year’s victory, defeating the Falcons by a devastating 24 points.  While they might have big shoes to fill, senior defensive end Rylan Scott is pretty confident that he and the team will be successful.  Scott says that Christian Brothers “has a couple of athletes,” but nothing the Marauders need to be concerned about.  Even though Scott is playing in a cast, due to his hand being broken in multiple places, he is still confident that Jesuit Varsity Football will vanquish all doubts about the fate of the game.

In fact, when asked about the Marauders’ chances of beating the Falcons, Scott only had a few words on the subject: “They’re going down.”